The BEST Guide to POLAND
Unanswered  |  Archives 
 
 
User: Guest

Home / Life  % width posts: 4

Polish traditions or customs of shaving baby's hair


beaumont2015 3 | 6
26 Jan 2017 #1
when is the right time to shave newborn baby hair, are there any customs or traditions
DarthBunny
26 Jan 2017 #3
Historically (arguably up to 18th century in some rural areas) there used to be a ceremony called 'postrzyżyny', which was conducted when a boy turned 7 and in which he would get his first haircut. As far as I know there was no official ceremony for girls (although my knowledge of this subject is somewhat limited), and in my opinion one can consider postrzyżyny to be the moment of the symbolic differentiation between a little boy and a little girl, especially that after the ceremony a boy would begin his military training under the supervision of his father and the elders of the settlement.
Atch 22 | 4,096
26 Jan 2017 #4
There doesn't seem to be any such tradition of shaving babies in Polish culture. I'm wondering where the OP got this idea from. It exists in certain Far Eastern countries and within the Muslim and Hindu cultures.

postrzyżyny to be the moment of the symbolic differentiation between a little boy and a little girl

Similar to the western European tradition of dressing a boy in skirts and keeping his hair long. The occasion of donning trousers for the first time was called 'breeching'. It died out gradually but was still very popular in Victorian England. Lots of photos of boys with lovely dresses and beautiful long curls!

no official ceremony for girls

Well there wouldn't be as girls kept their hair long. The nearest thing would be the putting up of the hair when they reached marriageable age. In Poland they had some ceremony involving hair before the wedding when the hairstyle was changed from two braids to one, or something like that, can't remember exactly.


Home / Life / Polish traditions or customs of shaving baby's hair